University of Georgia Athletics
Georgia Plays Host to Vanderbilt
January 21, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 21, 2005
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Complete Game Notes in PDF Format
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| Probable Starting Lineups | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GEORGIA BULLDOGS (6-8 overall, 0-4 in SEC) | ||||||||
| Head Coach: Dennis Felton (22-22 in second season at Georgia) | ||||||||
| Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | Hometown | PPG | RPG |
| F - | 15 | Steve Newman | 6-8 | 230 | So. | Orlando, Fla. | 8.1 | 4.3 |
| C - | 44 | Dave Bliss | 6-10 | 240 | Fr. | Wausau, Wis. | 6.7 | 5.6 |
| G - | 25 | Channing Toney | 6-4 | 195 | Fr. | Snellville, Ga. | 10.1 | 2.8 |
| G - | 2 | Sundiata Gaines | 6-1 | 180 | Fr. | Jamaica, N.Y. | 12.7 | 4.4 |
| G - | 14 | Levi Stukes | 6-1 | 180 | So. | Randallstown, Md. | 16.3 | 3.7 |
| Top Reserves | ||||||||
| F - | 00 | Younes Idrissi | 6-7 | 200 | Fr. | Casablanca, Morocco | 3.0 | 2.5 |
| G - | 3 | Kevin Brophy | 6-1 | 180 | Fr. | Melbourne, Australia | 2.8 | 1.1 |
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| VANDERBILT COMMODORES (11-6 overall, 2-2 in SEC) | ||||||||
| Head Coach: Kevin Stallings (96-75 in sixth season at Vanderbilt) | ||||||||
| Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | Hometown | PPG | RPG |
| F - | 32 | Shan Foster | 6-6 | 198 | Fr. | Kenner, La. | 7.1 | 2.0 |
| F - | 33 | Julian Terrell | 6-9 | 249 | Jr. | Nashville, Tenn. | 6.8 | 4.8 |
| C - | 13 | Dawid Przybyszewski | 7-2 | 261 | Sr. | Torun, Poland | 8.9 | 5.0 |
| G - | 1 | Mario Moore | 5-11 | 181 | Jr. | Nashville, Tenn. | 13.9 | 2.8 |
| G - | 3 | Jason Holwerda | 6-6 | 214 | Sr. | Chattanooga, Tenn. | 7.2 | 3.2 |
| Top Reserves | ||||||||
| F - | 44 | Corey Smith | 6-6 | 242 | Sr. | Houston, Texas | 11.1 | 4.1 |
| G - | 2 | Alex Gordon | 5-11 | 165 | Fr. | Pensacola, Fla. | 6.9 | 1.1 |
Opening Tipoff
• Georgia begins the second half of its regular season Saturday afternoon when it plays host to Vanderbilt. The Bulldogs arrive at this game with a 6-8 record, 0-4 in SEC play. They’ll be trying to avoid losing their first five conference games for the first time since 1998. That year, the Dogs ended the SEC schedule with a 7-9 record.
Both teams have enjoyed a “bye” date in their respective schedules this past week. Additionally, both teams also lost their most recent outings at home last Saturday, the Bulldogs dropping a 76-55 decision to Kentucky and Vandy losing to Florida 82-65.
Initially, Georgia had a second bye in the league schedule coming in mid-February. The Bulldogs, however, elected to fill that vacancy by slating a neutral-court contest Feb. 16 against ACC foe Clemson.
• Today’s game will be the 119th all-time meeting between these two schools. Vanderbilt leads the series by a 74-44 count. The home team has won each of the past seven times in this series. That includes a regular-season split last year, when Vandy won 61-39 in Nashville and Georgia won the return contest by a 71-61 score.
Leftovers from the Kentucky Game
> For one first-half stretch of approximately seven minutes, the Bulldogs’ lineup consisted of freshman guard Channing Toney, along with four walk-ons: freshmen Kevin Brophy, Matt Womack and Younes Idrissi, and Jay McAuley. Interestingly, this group, with help from additional walk-ons Joey Waldrop and Tommy Wainscott, trimmed the team’s deficit from 12 to eight points.
> Georgia’s 18 total rebounds were the fewest by a Bulldog team in 17 years, going back to a Feb. 6, 1988 win over Alabama, against which the Dogs had 15 boards. That’s a span of 513 games.
> Overshadowed somewhat was another solid performance from Idrissi, who had eight points, three boards and a blocked shot in just 14 minutes.
Odds, Ends and Trends
> Here’s where Georgia ranks in the 15 categories for which NCAA stats are kept. New NCAA rankings are released each Tuesday:
| | SEC | NCAA |
| Category | Rank | Rank |
| • Scoring Off. (65.9 ppg): | 12th | 236th |
| • Scoring Def. (69.1 ppg): | 10th | 193rd |
| • Scoring Marg. (-3.3): | 12th | 234th |
| • FG Pct. (42.3%): | 12th | 230th |
| • FG Pct. Def. (46.0%): | 11th | 273rd |
| • 3-Pt. FGs/G (6.1/game): | 10th | 188th |
| • 3-Pt. FG Pct. (31.7%): | 11th | 239th |
| • FT Pct. (61.4%): | 12th | 307th |
| • Reb. Marg. (-2.3): | 11th | 239th |
| • Assists (10.8 apg) | 12th | 306th |
| • Steals (8.1 spg): | 7th | 109th |
| • W/L Pct (.429): | 12th | 218th |
| • TOs (14.4 TO/g): | 7th | 106th |
| • Fouls (19.6): | -- | 234th |
> There are just two players in the SEC that have attempted more treys than Levi Stukes: Earnest Shelton ( Ala.) and Ian Young ( Auburn).
> Channing Toney and Steve Newman are by far Georgia’s best free throw shooters. Together they’ve made 64 of 73 attempts (87.7%). Remove their totals and Georgia’s overall free throw percentage drops from 61.4 to 52.8. Toney, in fact, now meets the minimum standard (2.5 FTM per game) to qualify as the SEC’s top free throw shooter. He’s also the 8th most accurate foul shooter among all Division I players, according to the lastest NCAA statistics.
> Georgia’s list of available players was reduced by two in the past week. Walk-on Alex Evans was lost for the season after injuring his right knee while Buzz Wehunt, another non-scholarship player, left the squad on Wednesday.
Of RPIs and Power Ratings
> Georgia’s schedule is rated 131st most difficult in the country, according to the latest RPI listings.
> The average RPI of all 22 Georgia opponents is 112. Among the non-conference opponents, the average is 172; for SEC teams, it’s 52.
> Unfortunately, all of the Bulldogs’ remaining 14 games are against teams that have higher RPI ratings than their own. That includes nine against Top 50 teams.
> Georgia’s current Sagarin rating of 204 represents the first time since either power rating began that a Bulldog team has dipped that low.
> Below are the most recent RPI and Sagarin power ratings of Georgia and all teams on its schedule:
| | RPI | Sagarin |
| GEORGIA | 166 | 204 |
| Western Kentucky | 123 | 72 |
| Nevada | 68 | 60 |
| Alabama A&M | 308 | 302 |
| Georgia Tech | 20 | 18 |
| Gardner-Webb | 182 | 167 |
| Oregon State | 115 | 124 |
| Wofford | 193 | 200 |
| Bethune-Cookman | 290 | 262 |
| Savannah State | 329 | 332 |
| Stetson | 227 | 263 |
| Tennessee | 70 | 83 |
| South Carolina | 58 | 62 |
| Ole Miss | 97 | 91 |
| Kentucky | 14 | 9 |
| Vanderbilt | 24 | 33 |
| Florida | 49 | 31 |
| Alabama | 13 | 19 |
| LSU | 43 | 89 |
| Arkansas | 63 | 34 |
| Clemson | 40 | 47 |
| Auburn | 112 | 133 |
| Miss. State | 26 | 26 |
Georgia and the SEC
Following are a few tidbits about Georgia's history in the SEC:
> Georgia's all-time record in SEC games, covering 72 years, is 448-639 (.413). That ranks 10th of the 12 current SEC members.
> Nine times in 72 seasons, Georgia has won 10 or more SEC games: 1968, '70, '82, '85, '87, '90, '97, ‘02 and ‘03.
> Georgia can claim one SEC regular-season championship (1990), one regular-season divisional title (2002) and one SEC Tournament crown (1983).
> Since the league expanded and was pared into East and West Divisions in 1992, Georgia has a 103-108 (.490) record. Seven times since ‘92 Georgia has had a league record of .500 or better (1993, '95, '96, '97, '01-’03).
> All of the above numbers do not take into account the 21 SEC victories over the 2002-03 seasons -- as well as the 2002 SEC East title -- that were later vacated because of NCAA sanctions.
> When Georgia defeated Auburn in the 2004 SEC Tournament first round, it marked the Dogs’ first win in the tournament since the 1998 meeting. Before ‘98, Georgia had gone 20 straight years of reaching at least the tournament’s second round.
Stukes Wins SEC P-O-W Award
Sophomore guard Levi Stukes, whose career-high 31 points led Georgia to its overtime victory against Oregon State, was named Dec. 13 as the SEC’s Player of the Week. In both of Georgia’s comeback wins that week, Stukes played key roles. Against Gardner-Webb he scored 10 of his 15 points in the final nine minutes, including the go-ahead free throws with 1:09 left.
Stukes became the16th UGA player to win the P-O-W award since its inception in 1985. Three former Bulldogs were multiple winners, led by 4-time recipient Ezra Williams.
Starting Over, For Sure
Normally, a coach needs three, sometimes four years to put his imprint upon a program. That’s how long it usually takes to stock the roster with his own players.
Not so for Georgia under Dennis Felton.
He’s needed scarcely more than one year to reach a point of almost complete roster turnover. The four seniors that so dominated the program in 2004 are gone.
Even the closest followers of Georgia basketball will likely need some help identifying the home team this season. Of the 18 players that could suit up for Georgia, 11 of them were not on last year’s team.
Starting Over & Starting Young
When Georgia coach Dennis Felton says, “I have to believe that we’re the youngest team in the country,” it’s hard to question him.
The average age of the 2004-05 Georgia team is 19 years, 175 days, ranging from 22-year-old walk-on Tommy Wainscott to the quartet of freshmen (Gaines, Toney, Evans and Bliss) that start the season at 18 years of age. Three more -- Gibbs, Waldrop and Greavu -- won’t lose their “teenager” status until next year.
In addition to this team’s youth, it also has fewer scholarshipped players than virtually every team in America. Of the 18 players currently in the program, just seven of them receive athletic grants-in-aid.
Frosh Starters Make History
The Western Kentucky game marked just the second time at Georgia since freshmen became eligible in 1973 that three rookies started their first games together. Hugh Durham began his second season (1979-80) by starting three rookies on Opening Night: Dominique Wilkins, Terry Fair and Derrick Floyd.
The very next year Durham started multiple freshmen again: James Banks and Vern Fleming. No Georgia team did it again until last season, when Levi Stukes and Steve Newman started against Western Carolina.
.c.Sikes Dismissed, Seven Left
In mid-December, Georgia coach Dennis Felton announced the dismissal of sophomore forward Marcus Sikes from the team. Sikes had been on indefinite suspension since September for disciplinary reasons. His dismissal reduced the number of scholarship players on UGA’s roster to seven.
Have Snorkel, Sunscreen, Will Travel
The 2005-06 season will certainly tip off in grand style for the Bulldogs. They’ve signed on to participate in the 2005 Paradise Jam, which will be played on campus at the University of the Virgin Islands on St. Thomas. The 8-team tournament is slated for the opening weekend of the season: Nov. 18-21.
Edmonds, Wash.-based Basketball Travelers, Inc. -- the same company which arranged Georgia’s trip to Vancouver this year -- annually produces the Paradise Jam tournament.
More on Frosh Contributions
Below is a table that shows just how vital Georgia’s freshman class is, as it relates to the other 11 SEC programs. The two columns listed are 1) the percentage of a team’s minutes that are logged by freshmen and 2) the total number of starts recorded by freshmen:
| | Pct. of Min. | Starts |
| School | by Frosh | by Frosh |
| | ||
| Alabama | 27% | 17 |
| Arkansas | 31% | 33 |
| Auburn | 40% | 33 |
| Florida | 41% | 23 |
| GEORGIA | 67% | 42 |
| Kentucky | 33% | 30 |
| LSU | 14% | 13 |
| Ole Miss | 14% | 12 |
| Miss. State | 3% | 0 |
| S. Carolina | 4% | 0 |
| Tennessee | 19% | 17 |
| Vanderbilt | 26% | 10 |
On Stukes & 3-Point Shooting
Levi Stukes is well on his way toward becoming Georgia’s all-time leader in 3-point shooting. Assuming a 4-year career, he would surpass D.A. Layne, the current career leader in 3-pointers made with 231, sometime early in his senior year. Layne, who played just three seasons, made his 231 treys in 91 games (2.3/game). Stukes currently averages 2.1 treys per game.
| Top 3-Pt. Shooters in UGA History | ||
| D.A. Layne (1999-2001) | 231x583 | 2.5/g |
| Litterial Green (1988-92) | 215x544 | 1.9/g |
| Ezra Williams (2001-03) | 213x582 | 2.4/g |
| G.G. Smith (1996-99) | 193x500 | 1.5/g |
| Bernard Davis (1991-94) | 184x453 | 1.7/g |
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